Mystery Illness Strikes Scores Of Dogs Making Them Lethargic And Thin

Dog owners across Yorkshire have seen their beloved pets fall ill with the mysterious virus, which is believed to have travelled inland from coastal beaches.

Garforth resident Grace Feeney has noticed the 'piles of diarrhoea' their pets are producing in Temple Newsman park.

Jennifer Griffin also said her 15-month-old puppy fell violently ill a matter of hours after finishing a walk at Temple Newsam.

She explained: "He’s shaking, has a temperature, he’s vomiting loads, lethargic, not eating anything."

Her dog, Vader, was taken to the vet and was told he'd unfortunately contracted the mystery illness.

Jennifer added: "We have to watch him for 48 hrs to make sure he doesn’t get dehydrated. The vet said it may take a week or more to recover.

"He became poorly within three hours of being at Temple Newsam."

Nicola Jane said her dog became extremely poorly just a few hours after the walk.

She added: "He is a mess, he is like a skeleton he is that skinny.

"He lost that much weight.

"There was nothing on him, no life, he was limp, I thought he was gone, I thought I was losing him."

Association president of The British Veterinary Associationt, Dr Justine Shotton, said: "We are aware of a recent spike in cases of dogs falling ill from gastroenteritis-like symptoms in several parts of Yorkshire and North East England. 

"Vets see gastroenteritis cases relatively commonly in practice, but numbers seem to be increasing and more widespread than usual."

"We saw something similar a couple of years ago and the latest data from the University of Liverpool's veterinary surveillance database points to the spike being part of normal seasonal variation at the moment.

"Our advice to concerned owners is to contact their local vet for prompt treatment if their dog shows any signs of illness, such as vomiting and diarrhoea," she said.